Trayton bounced a stone on his hand as his horse trailed behind the one in front of it. He'd found it on the ground in the courtyard while he was waiting for the party to head out. It was a perfect oval. Trayton assumed it had come from the ocean at some point. He'd picked it up on a whim, and now it was his only entertainment for the long ride.
Trayton was the last man in line, just ahead of two pack mules dragging empty sleds. Once they reached a certain point, the horses would be useless, so several servants had come with to take them back to the city. They'd been traveling for at least seven hours, and were well past the tree line. Trayton felt a strange sense of disappointment when he realized they wouldn't be using the same pass he'd used to enter the valley. But it wasn't as if Elaine would still be around, waiting for him to show up.
"We'll stop here for lunch," a large, brown haired man shouted. His name was Torek, and as the Duke's captain, he was leading the expedition. Trayton dismounted and took out a small bundle of food from his saddlebags. He'd eaten some breakfast not so long ago, so he wasn't too hungry.
Trayton was leaning on his horse when one of the men, slightly smaller than Torek, came up to him with his hands in his pockets. "Name's Murtagh," he said. "Heard you were a prince?"
Trayton chewed slowly, choosing his words carefully. "I am... I do hope it's not a problem."
Murtagh shook his head. "Just thought royalty liked to stick together, look after their own selves and all."
Trayton crossed his arms. "Royalty like to keep their people safe and help others. You don't have to believe me, but I'm here to help you." Murtagh eyed him suspiciously, then nodded and slipped away to eat his own meal. Trayton sighed. It was going to be a long trip if all the men were like this.
Everyone left him alone after that, and soon they were on their way again. The snow was blinding under the midday sun, and Trayton was squinting so badly his eyes may as well have been shut. He didn't know how Torek could see where he was leading them, but he was grateful it wasn't his job.
Trayton was starting to wonder when they'd have supper when Torek held up a hand and reined in his horse. "This is where we kiss the horses goodbye, boys!" He said as he dismounted. There was some grumbling, but Torek silenced it with a look. "You lot are lucky we took 'em this far!"
As the servants unloaded the packs they'd be using, Trayton patted his horse and stripped it of anything he might need. "Thanks for carrying me, girl," he said softly. He dug a sugar cube he'd been saving out of his pocket and fed it to the mare. She tossed her head happily and snatched it out of his hand. Trayton tried not to laugh; he was sure the men wouldn't appreciate the humor.
Finally, the thirteen of them were ready to go. The servants started back to the city as Trayton followed the men up. This pass was much smaller than the one he'd used before, barely large enough for five men to walk side by side. "Is there a reason we're using this pass?" Trayton asked the man in front of him. "Or did Torek just pick the one he thought best?"
The man stared at him for a moment. Trayton was almost feeling self-conscious when he finally answered. "The witch's ice castle we found was on the North Mountain," he said. Trayton remembered that was the last mountain he'd crossed to get here. "So her new hideout is probably not too far from her old one."
Trayton nodded, trying to ignore what he'd called Arendelle's queen. "I suppose that does make a measure of sense."
The man gave him a strange look. "Anyone ever tell you ya talk funny?"
Trayton sighed. "Many a time, my friend. Many a time." He let the other men outpace him until he was the last. He had never learned to track in snow, being from a chain of warm islands, so he was useless until they actually found the Queen.
Thinking of the Queen raised the guilt Trayton had been trying to suppress. It also reminded him of Princesses Anna and Rapunzel, and how he'd lied to them about keeping the Queen safe no matter what. But it was for the best, he kept telling himself. The needs of the many before the needs of the few.
Trayton was jerked out of his thoughts when he saw a slight movement to his right. He whipped his head around, but didn't see anything. He stalked toward the snowdrift, hand gripping his sword hilt, ready to draw. He rounded the drift, but there was nothing there. Trayton frowned, but jogged to catch back up to the group. This was no place to get lost, especially with nigh falling.
By the time they stopped to have supper and make camp, Trayton could no longer see the pass they had entered through. It was just snow and mountain peaks in every direction. Trayton pulled several blankets out of his pack, along with some bread and dried meat. There would be no fires up here unless they found a rare stand of pine trees, so he was stuck with cold food.
As he was eating, Torek lumbered over and sat next to him. Trayton eyed him warily, wondering what he could possibly want. "I hear you're from the Southern Isles," he said as he chewed. "Th' Duke says you and your brother are gonna help us get the Queen. I wanna make sure I can trust you to do what needs to be done. Can I?"
Trayton put down his bread and thought of Anna and Kristoff. Of Rapunzel and Flynn. Surprisingly, he even thought of Elaine. What would they say if they discovered he'd hunted the Queen like an animal? They'd probably hate him. "You can, sir," Trayton affirmed. Torek had said it himself; it was what needed to be done.
"Good man!" Torek grinned broadly and slapped him on the back. Trayton almost went flying forward as Torek stood and returned to his spot among the other men. Trayton shook his head and put the rest of his food away. He wasn't hungry anymore, just tired. He spread out his blankets and was asleep almost before his head hit the pillow.
Elsa watched from afar as the men settled down to sleep. She counted thirteen, and had been surprised to find one was Trayton, of all people. Elsa had been following them since they entered the pass, since she'd spotted them from her vantage point on the North Mountain. She had been visiting her first ice palace, remembering how she'd felt that first night in the mountains.
Trayton had almost caught her when she tried to get a closer look, but Elsa had buried herself in the snowdrift she was hiding behind until he left. She'd learned her lesson and was now far enough away to be unable to hear them talking. "What are you doing here, Trayton?" She whispered to herself. "Why can't you leave well enough alone?"
Elsa watched as one by one, the soldiers fell asleep. They were huge men, the smallest of them still standing over Trayton from what she'd seen. Not that Trayton was small; he had enough muscle to lift a horse, but it was packed into his lean body like a runner. Okay, maybe not an entire horse, but he looked strong. The others were just so tall. Elsa was certain she would barely come up to their chests.
Eventually, the last man fell asleep. Unfortunately, it wasn't Trayton. Elsa would have to wait until tomorrow to talk to him. Hopefully, he would be on the morning sentry duty. Elsa created a small bed in the snowbank she was hiding behind and settled in for the night. She would wake with the sun and see what the dawn brought.
The next morning, Elsa woke as the first rays of morning kissed the mountains. She stretched and yawned in the light. She quickly remembered where she was and looked down the slope at the group of men. None of them were awake, not even the sentry. Elsa scoffed. She could walk right down there and kill half of them before they knew what was happening, even without her powers.
Movement suddenly caught her eye. One of the men had sat up and was stretching his arms above his head. Elsa realized with a start that it was Trayton. Apparently he was capable of rising early. She watched as he looked around, shook his head at the snoring sentry, and packed his gear. Elsa waited until he was chewing on some bread before heading down, keeping out of sight.
As Elsa reached the edge of the camp, she dressed herself in the white leather and furs Trayton had seen her in. "Trayton," she hissed quietly. He whipped his head up, his breakfast all but forgotten.
"Hello?" He whispered uncertainly.
"This way!"
Trayton narrowed his eyes as he scanned the camp's perimeter. His face lit up when he saw her. "Elaine!" He said softly as he jogged over. "I never thought I'd see you again!" He looked far happier than she'd expected, but she pushed the thought away.
"What are you doing here?" Elsa demanded, trying not to sound too unkind.
Trayton stopped and seemed to wilt when he heard her words. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't realize my presence was so unwelcome. I'll leave as soon as I'm able, if you want."
Elsa almost reached out to him. "No, it's not that, I just..." she didn't even know why she'd come down. "Who are these men?"
"They're the Duke of Westleton's men. They were sent from Arendelle's palace on a mission, and I volunteered my aid."
Elsa felt faint as she remembered the Duke's painful accusations the night if her coronation. "And what is this... mission?" And how had he been in a position to volunteer for it?
Trayton looked around, as if to make sure everyone was still asleep. "We're looking for the Queen. I've been told she has magical powers and is responsible for this winter. She's said to be hiding in these mountains." He suddenly glanced at her, and Elsa was afraid he'd connected the dots. "Say, you haven't seen her, have you?"
Elsa could barely manage to shake her head. "No, I've been completely alone up here. Except for you."
Trayton's eyes softened, and he reached for her gloved hand. "You have another chance to join me, Elaine," he said kindly. "Wait for me at the pass, and I'll come for you when this queen business is over. Will you at least think on my offer?"
Elsa opened her mouth, but she had no idea how to answer him. Before she had a chance to make things worse, Elsa was interrupted.
"HEY!"
Elsa jumped as an angry voice thundered from just a few feet away, breaking the peaceful morning air. Trayton instinctively drew the sword at his waist and spun to face the danger. His arm lowered when he saw it was one of the other men, but Elsa fled in near terror. "Torek, what-" but Trayton was cut off. Elsa wanted desperately to look back, but she knew she would be caught if she did. Footsteps thumped quickly in the snow behind her, encouraging Elsa to sprint faster. This Torek was faster than her, but he was also heavier. He sank into the snow with every step, and Elsa slowly pulled ahead. She knew this place far better than he did, and soon she disappeared up a small ravine.
Elsa pressed her back against the rock wall and panted heavily for a few minutes. She glanced back to make sure she hadn't been followed. In her panic, Elsa had run straight to the one place she felt safe; her ice palace. She ran her hands through her hair as she realized she had just led the search party halfway to her home. Hopefully they would pass it by, or give up when they saw she hadn't put steps leading right up to the front door, like she had last time.
Elsa dragged the scarf off her face, along with the gloves and jacket as she made her way to her castle. They were all well and good for playing in the snow, but her ice dress was far more comfortable for moving around her palace. She covered herself in ice, then let most of it melt, leaving behind a thin dress with intricate patterns and a sheer train trailing behind it. It brought back memories of the night she ran away, but Elsa was content to suffer. After all, she deserved it.
Torek's shouting had woken the rest of the men, so Trayton didn't bother with them before sprinting after Elaine and Torek. They were already ahead of him, but Elaine was slowly pulling away. She rounded a snowdrift he hadn't even seen, and was gone by the time he reached it. Torek growled at his loss and rounded on him. "Who was that?" He ground out.
"She's a woman I met on my travels, nothing more," he answered. But she was so much more.
"So you must know where she's headed?"
Trayton shook his head. "I don't even know what she looks like. But I swear to you, she will do us no harm."
Before Torek could shout at him again, the other eleven men caught up with them, packs on their shoulders. "You'd better not be lying," Torek said as he shoved a finger at Trayton's chest. He stood his ground but didn't challenge the captain.
"Sir, which way?" Murtagh asked.
Torek glanced around and pointed in the direction Elaine had disappeared in. "We'll start over there. Maybe this 'harmless' woman is taking shelter with the snow witch. Search everywhere!"
Trayton followed the soldiers as they traveled up yet another mountain peak. They had no luck until Trayton noticed that the sun was rising. He smiled slightly, recalling his conversation with Elaine about sleeping late. Suddenly, the sun reflected off something in the distance, blinding him. Trayton held a hand in front of his face to block the light. "What is that?" He exclaimed.
The men squinted for a while, trying to figure out what was causing the reflection. Then Torek grinned darkly. "That, boys, is what we're here for."
Trayton trailed behind another man, Durin, still unable to make out whatever was sitting on the distant peak. As they neared it and the sun was no longer shining through it, Trayton gasped in awe. If he'd doubted the Queen's powers, there was no denying them now. The proof was right there, nestled between two mountains and lit on fire by the sunrise. How else would such a glorious palace get here if not by magic?
Anna huffed and pulled her cloak tighter around her. Why, of all things, did Elsa have to have snow powers? And then she just had to freeze the kingdom over. No one would be trying to kill her if she just thawed everything, and Anna wouldn't be traipsing through two feet of snow to help save her.
After sitting through a tense lunch with Hans, Kristoff, Rapunzel, and Flynn, Anna had grabbed some food and snuck out of the palace. She figured the search party would have a decent head start by then, but the tracks wouldn't be snowed over yet. She had to leave her horse behind to avoid suspicion, so now she was stuck walking through the forest in the quickly descending night.
Anna suddenly tripped, falling face first into the snow. She sputtered in surprise, wiping the cold stuff off her face. Strangely, the crunching sound of footsteps continued for a few seconds before stopping altogether. Anna looked up nervously. Someone was following her, which was not good in her current situation. Either they were going to rob her or take her back to the castle. Anna scrambled up the nearest tree without stopping to think about her plan.
Finally, when the darkness was nearly total, the footsteps started again, coming closer. When a shadow separated itself from the rest and passed under her tree, Anna jumped. She landed on the person's back, dragging them both into the snow. The body beneath her let out a high pitched scream, one Anna returned almost immediately. The woman pushed her off and scrambled to her feet, raising a... frying pan?
"Stay back you- Anna?" Rapunzel said in surprise. "What were you thinking?!"
"What was I thinking? You were following me in a dark forest! What was I supposed to do?" Anna replied, resting a hand over her pounding heart. "Seriously, feel my heart."
Rapunzel let out a weak laugh. "I guess you're right. But what are you doing?"
Anna looked away. "I know Trayton said he'd protect Elsa, but I don't trust the Duke's men at all. I thought I'd follow them and sneak Elsa out if they found her."
Rapunzel shook her head. "Well, I can't really stop you, but I can go with you."
Anna grinned at her friend. "Thanks!" She hugged her tightly. Together, they resumed tracking the search party until they left the forest. They decided to camp under the last few trees, mostly because there wasn't enough light to see the tracks anymore. They ate a quick dinner before laying down to sleep. Hopefully, they'd catch up by nightfall the next day.
